| Abstract Detail
Ecology / Ecologie (CBA/ABC) Vasseur, Liette [1], Pouzet, Sylvain [2], Provencher, Leo [2], Dubois, Jean-Marie [2], Tremblay, Eric [3], Poulin, Andre [3]. Biophysical characterization of abandoned fields in Kouchibouguac National Park of Canada: development of a long term monitoring program. Kouchibouguac National Park of Canada was established in 1969 through the expropriation of several farms. These cultivated lands were used until the establishment of the park and since most of them have been left to naturally regenerate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the status of the regeneration of these lands into natural Acadian forest. Aerial photographs from 1969 until 1995 were examined to evaluate the rate of succession and define the homogenous zones in the park. This was followed by field surveys to record the presence or absences of native and exotic species. The results suggest that the current plant community composition was not significantly influenced by the measured environmental factors (e.g. fire frequency, soil texture, drainage, size of the field, etc.). The comparison of this survey with the one done on the same fields in 1978 shows that for most of the abandoned lands, very little changes occurred in the past 25 years. While some fields have been colonized by shrubs and young trees, for most, it is not possible to define a specific succession pattern as of yet. As the park is interested in continuing the monitoring the regeneration of these fields, a statistical approach was used and recommended that a minimum of 16 fields be monitored in the long term to understand the rate and the pattern of succession of the abandoned fields in the park.
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1 - Laurentian University, 935 Ramsey Lake Road, Sudbury, ON, P3E 2C6, Canada
2 - Universite de Sherbrooke, Département de géomatique appliquée, 2100 Boul. Universite, Sherbrooke, Qc, J1K 2R1, Canada
3 - Kouchibouguac National Park of Canada, Kouchibouguac, NB, E4X 2P1, Canada
Keywords:
abandoned fields
Diversity
regeneration
monitoring
sucession.
Presentation Type: Oral Paper:Papers for Sections
Session: 12
Location: 177/Law
Date: Monday, July 28th, 2008
Time: 10:30 AM
Number: 12002
Abstract ID:698 |
